Thursday, December 2, 2010

Vicki 2013 Response: Cultural Heritage


I believe that it is worthwhile to fight to preserve your cultural heritage. So many times I see people with hispanic heritage that don't know how to speak spanish. This angers me. It feels like the parents didn't think it was worthwhile to pass on valuable cultural heritage. Something as simple yet rich to pass on to your children is language. It is so simple for children to learn it, too. And one day the parents will realize (and I know it happens) they should have taken the time to teach their kids a different language than what will be taught at school.

I think the best way to relate with other people with a different cultural heritage is by trying to communicate and really understand what their culture is like. The absolute best way to learn about other people and their cultural heritage is to actually take a quick visit to their country of origin. Once you are immersed in the culture and the language, it will be so much easier to learn the different language and understand the other person better. If you wonder why your friend can't drive a car, you might learn that people from his/her home country actually get around town on a bike. Going to other countries is also a great way to make the culture and history really come alive. Instead of reading about in History textbooks or buying Rosetta Stone to learn another language, you can personally witness what the people in the country are like and how the country came to be that way.

-Vicki 2013

Cultural Heritage

Is it worthwhile to fight for the preservation of one’s cultural heritage (traditions, customs, language, social values...)?
    Yes, I believe that the preservation of one's cultural heritage is worthwhile fighting. Because it makes up a large portion of a person's identity, it isn't sensible to lose one's heritage and a major part of their identity. By practicing your customs publicly or privately, a person is able to have at least somewhat of a connection to their culture. But, if someone were to lose their sense of belonging to a culture, then it would be very difficult for them to find their way back. The reason for this is that, a person is born with their own natural cultural background, and if they decide to let their identity go, then they give up the ownership of their identity or cultural heritage.  
Which part of your experience could be useful for connecting with people from a different background and make communication easier?
      Because my parents were Indian and were born there, the language, traditions, way of life, and structure of society influenced them.They passed this cultural heritage down to me. And this makes it much easier for me to be able to communicate with people from my background, then it would be with a person from another cultural background. The 1st language that I learned was Urdu, my mother and father's language. Because they spoke it at home, I quickly picked it up and because of the experiences I've had with trying to learn that language, I can not only communicate but also understand the ways in how my cultural society works.  
 -R.S.

answer

Is it worthwhile to fight for the preservation of one’s cultural heritage (traditions, customs, language, social values...)?
    Answer: I think it is important to fight for our cultural heritage. It is part of one's identity. To be known of the cultural heritage is easier to find one's identity. There are different parts of cultural heritages. Language of one culture is important. In order to read and understand the cultural better, language is the most helpful tool to use. Social values are also improtant. Knowing what the values are can help people more clear to know the setting of the society. Once a person knows what his cultures are, he completes one part of his identity.
   
Which part of your experience could be useful for connecting with people from a different background and make communication easier?
    Answer: We meet different people everyday. To be able to communicate with them is important. I'm living in a foreign country, and I meet different people with different backgrounds everyday. It is not easy talking with them. First I don't know their language well, so sometimes they don't undertand what I am talking about. I also don't know a lot of cultural rules. For example, asking a person's income is not polite. I have to study those rules in order to  better commuicate with them. My expriences tell me I should study the person's culture before I talk to them.
likezekeem
                                       

questions

Initially, most people would say yes. It is important to stay in touch with your culture. I believe that culture is important, of course, because it's something that brings you together with a group of people and gives you a sense of belonging. But recently I've started to see culture as a limiting factor. I don't like the idea of having a set of rules dictate who you should be. I'm looking at it from an individualist standpoint I guess because that's...generally how I look at things. Maybe that's American culture.
Experiences that help me connect with people of different backgrounds... Well, to state the obvious I go to an international school, which helps me to connect with people by having friends from different backgrounds. Generally, I've friends from different backgrounds for as long as I can remember. A lot of them have ended up leaving the country, and when I stay in touch with them I sort of see what things are like in other parts of the world. For instance, one friend moved to Saudi Arabia-a drastically different culture from the US. Another close friend moved to Mexico. By staying in touch with them I guess you could say I see different cultures from their perspective, since I haven't had that sort of experience myself.
--CZ

Cultual Heritage

I think it is import to perserve your culture heritage becuase it is one of the many elements that make you unique from everyone else. When someone is able to connect with their heritage and feel like they are a part of it, it is easier for that person to communicate with other people of that group and ultimately have more connections with people around the world. It's important to perserve language because you want to be able to understand people of your culture and the different aspects of the culture. Traditions and customs are also worth keeping because they are positive things that some people of your surroundings are not aware of. This helps to shape your identity by keeping you unique from everyone else.

Living in a foreign country helped me connect with people from different backgrounds because I was surrounded with those people from different countries and I was able to learn about their cultures and lifestyles. I feel like it is easier to relate to people from different places now that I understand their backgrounds and why they might act a certain way. Therefore, it is easier to communicate with them because I now know how be tolerant of different cultures and accept their differences.
Is it worthwhile to fight for the preservation of one’s cultural heritage (traditions, customs, language, social values...)?

Yes, I think to some extent that it is important to preserve unique cultural traditions. Without things like that people would be less unique, and their experiences and ideas would be the same (more or less) to others. But if cultural heritage becomes too important in society, it can lead to ethical issues. When people only see others by their heritage, they will judge them soley based on their background, and things like this have led to many crimes based on race such as the Holocaust and segregation in America.

Which part of your experience could be useful for connecting with people from a different background and make communication easier?
       Based on where you came from or the things you have been through on life, you might be able to relate to others better. If two people have the same ethnic origin, they will be able to understand and relate to each other better. Things like accent, language, traditions, cuisine, all help people relate to each other. Also if people have gone through the same situation as someone else they will be able to relate to them and will probably feel more comfortable around them. Like if two people both were soldiers in WW2, they could probably relate to each other better than they would an average person. Also, if two people studied the same subject in college, they would have an easier time discussing and relating to people.

       For me, since I am from India, I can relate to people who are also from India. I have an easier time relating to people my age, than people a different age. I can also start a conversation quicker with someone who follows basketball or plays video games. But I think that I can
        be comfortable around people who are totally different from me, background doesn't play a big role.

-SM

Sunday, November 28, 2010

Cultural heritage

Is it worthwhile to fight for the preservation of one’s cultural heritage (traditions, customs, language, social values...)?
Which part of your experience could be useful for connecting with people from a different background and make communication easier?

Tuesday, November 2, 2010

Changes in Identity (the face)


People can change their identities in different ways for many reasons. Often, someone will change his or her identity to fit into a group. People may also change their identity to stand out of a group, or to prove that they are not something. This almost always leads them to another group that they also must conform to in some way.

On a different note, some people will change their physical appearance either to feel more confident, or to change the way they are perceived. This often happens in the form of plastic surgery. In particular, people who are always being looked at are pressured to look perfect, so they change details of their faces and bodies that they think are flawed.

Celebrities and common people alike also wear makeup--or, in the case of men, grow beards--to change or hide the part of their identity that is their face. Every circumstance is different in this situation; sometimes makeup enhances the natural features of the face, and sometimes it hides them. The same is true for beards.
Overall, many people will take certain measures to  change their face in order to present themselves differently. This can effectively change your identity in affecting the way you are seen by others and the way you see yourself.

Changes in identity


In the book “in the name of identities”, the author says that our identities growth and change with our age. Our identities don't stay same all the time. It changes. Different people may have different changes because of the experiences.
For me the most significant changes in my identities are because of changing places. I left my home country when I was young; I started living by myself in a foreign county after I left. I feel that my identities have changed because of that. I used to stay up all night just try to finish my homework. Now homework costs less than one hour to finish. I use to go to temple every weekend just because my mom asks me to. Now I sing the holly song because I feel that I should do. All of those changes because of I changed the place I live. I started be proud of my religion when I saw everyone in American does. My identities have changed. 


 I used to ride a bike to school, now I drive to school


I used to eat Chinese food everyday, now I always eat fastfood.





 I used to write in Chinese all the time, now I'm in the ESL class and try to learn wirte in English.







                                                                          likezekeem
                                                                                     

CHANGES identity......?

I think  if people changes indentity , frist they need changes activity in they's life .Maybe They want a better life or they want different , special with the other people, so they changes indentity.Indentity is very importan in our life, if you changes indentity as well you changes all everything in your life, so you need think carefully about it when you want a new life .....It's depends on you?. I think be alaways yourself is a best......What do you thik abou it .......?

Change in Identity

People change their identity because they feel like their life in the present could be better if they either hide a part of themselves,or only show a small portion of themselves. People can have different identities that they share with different people. For example when  a person is surfing the web or is online, they might act differently then they would if they were in person. They do this for many reasons. One of them is that they could be feeling left out or alone and they feel more comfortable on the computer than with a person. Another could be that they are just in a mood of expressing how they feel, and everyone knows that the best place to broadcast how you feel is over the Internet.

Those people that change their identity, might not like what they forced them self to become, and because of this they might want to constantly keep changing who they are. Of course it doesn't necessarily have to be a bad thing, because it is good way for people to experience new ways of life, and be familiar with them. But if a person were to be changing their identities for the reason of not feeling wanted, abandoned, hopeless, or even abused then it would be better for them to try and change the situation without changing who they are.

(examples of people who have changed their identities) : http://councilofexmuslims.com/index.php?topic=9562.0 this link will take you there....

Changes in Identity Response Vicki 2013



During the Holocaust, people were being prosecuted for a part of their identity, their religion. This was a time where either you embraced your Jewish faith and died for your faith or you hid that part of your identity and saved your life. People of faith would obviously want to sacrifice their lives for their religion. But on second thought, one needs to think of all that you would be leaving behind. Many people didn't even have a choice. They were just ripped out of their homes and sent to concentration camps.
I know a story about a man who gave up his life to save someone else during the Holocaust. His name was Maximilian Kolbe. He was sent to Auschwitz, where he met a man and his family. This man was sentenced to execution. Maximilian realized that this man had more to lose than he did; therefore, he went to where the man was going to be executed, pretended to be him, and died. This noble act earned him the name, St. Maximilian Kolbe. The church I go to is named after him, as an honor to his sacrifice.
St. Max had a big heart. He not only embraced his religion, but he gave up his life when he really had no need to. He could have lived. But he knew the other man would be leaving a whole family behind.
-Victoria Cardenas

Changes in Identities

There are many ways in which people change identities. Most people change their identities because they feel if others know of a part of their identity they might hurt the individual. They can also have changes in their identity by experiencing things that transform their perspective of their life. Simple things such as reading an influential book or going to a different restaurant can change the person's identity.

Another example of changes in identity is the witness protection program, where the people who have witnessed a crime and have given leads for cops have to be protected so that the criminal or the gang that they testified against doesn't try to harm them. During the witness protection program they usually have to change their name, lie about their date of birth, and hide or change many aspects of their life.

Victims of stalking also change their identity totally so that the stalker can't locate them. One person, Lisa, changed her name, contact details, and other aspects of her life. She moved from America to Southeast Asia and sucessfully lost the stalker.

During wars or immense prosecution civilians might hide part of their identity so they aren't prosecuted and targeted by the prosecutors. An example is during the Holocaust many people claimed that they were Christans and had no Jewish affiliations whatsoever. The reasons for this are obvious because if they admitted to being Jewish Hitler would have tortured and killed them.

People have been known to change their identity to hide from payments or debts. Many people change their identity so tax collectors and loan companies can't charge them and take their money.

Even when a person's life isn't in danger they may still change parts or all of their identity for  other reasons. One of them is when someone falls in love. When somebody falls in love with someone else who has a very different lifestyle, the person might try to change his/her life and identity to appeal more to his/her crush.

But in the end I think it is nearly impossible to change your identity. Even if you change your name, lifestyle, and interests the old aspects of your identity will still be there, in your subconcious, affecting you in minute and almost invisible ways. You can never take things away from your identity, only add things.

Sources:
http://www.helium.com/items/720422-why-do-people-seem-to-lose-their-identity-when-they-get-married
http://changeidentity.net/?p=19

-SM

Changes in Identity

If people feel that their identity is being threatened in their environment, then they are likely to hide it or stand up for that aspect of their identity. For example, if someone of a certain religion lives in a place where that religion is not tolerated, then they are going to feel that it's necessary to conceal that religious aspect in order to not have trouble with others. They are still the same person, except now they must decide to loose that part of their identity or keep it significant. If they choose to keep it significant, then it will become a super important part of their identity because they are going to defend it.
Like in the Holocaust, people were forced to change their lifestyle and move to the concentration camps were they were not able to do the same things that they were able to do before the war. I can imagine that this gave them resentment for their faith because it had corrupted their lives. Once they were in concentration camps, their identity had changed because they weren't allowed to be Jewish freely.
-Catherine

Changes in identity

Group members change their identity to correspond to various kinds of changes in their environment.  Can you think of some examples?

Friday, October 22, 2010

Diversity

In recent years, especially in America, diversity has been encouraged in our society. Most would agree that this is a good thing. However, this diversity--if simply forced upon governments and associations with the use of "token" representatives--is virtually meaningless, and diversity should not be forced where it does not happen naturally.
For example, a police force may recognize that its demographic is predominantly male. Should it then hire more women and turn away more men in the interest of diversity? In this case, women who may not be as adequate for the job-not because they are women but because they are not as qualified-will be accepted as tokens simply because they are women, and the quality of the police force will decline. In this case, this forced sense of diversity favors the minority rather than promoting equality.
In another case, artificial diversity could cause a minority to be a forced part of an organization or government, there as a token but with no real voice. If only a few minority individuals are included, their voice may simply be overpowered by the collective voice of the majority. The only way for this promotion of diversity to work properly is if all members cooperate, agreeing to open their minds to different views.
However, if every government did this, the individual cultures and traditions would eventually be lost. This is not to say that minorities should not be represented, only that they should be represented (in the case if a government) in proportion to their population within the country.
--CZ

How Diversity affects Society

I agree that the key to diversity is not just an increase in the number of Latinos, African Americans, or other different nations, but instead a difference in opinions, moral values, perspective, and thoughts. When everyone brings there own different thoughts, and present their ideas to others, a sense of individuality is shown. The more people with different opinions, the more diversity there is. And the more diverse a society is, the more we realize how unique each one of us is.

I believe that the more different kinds of people there are in a society then the more we get to understand and comprehend each others beliefs, thoughts, and values. For example if the majority of people are all different, then it would be easier for that group of people to relate to each other. However if only the majority is diverse then tensions will be the most likely thing to be present in the situation. That's why I think it is important to have people of different thoughts and beliefs.

Diversity

No matter what the ethnic makeup of a group is, everyone has their own individual thoughts and views, which makes  the group diverse. A person can be the only racially different one in a group, and yet share the same thoughts as the rest of the people. I think there are different aspects of diversity depending on the situation. For example, when schools say that they are diverse, I think that they are most likely referring to ethnicity or culture so that students from around the world can feel more comfortable. I think the way people think comes form how they were raised and the environment that they were raised in along with many other components. Although people might be raised in the same place and in the same way, each person has their own individual thoughts that they come up with for themselves.

Caherine

Thoughts on Diversity

       I agree with that diversity is not only existed between people from different nations, but also happened between different thoughts; religions or values. People may have same culture backgroud but have diiferent point views on one thing, them they have diversity between each other.
       Connect to myself, I am Chinese, and I believe in Buddhism. Some of my friends in China believe in Christianity. When we have a discussion on believe or God, we always have a huge argument. The argument between us is the diversity between us.
       No one has the same identity, we are all different between each other. The differences creates the diversities. So even people all from the same nation, all have the same education, all have the same religion, there still some diversities in between, that is what ourselves a unique person.
                                                                                           likezekeem